Method of covering heels



March 3, i936.

M. W. TETLOW METHOD `OF COVERING HEELS 'Filed Feb. 19, 1954 Patented Mar. 3, 1936 UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF COVERING HEELS a corporation of New Jersey Application February 19, 1934, Serial No. 711,873

8 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in methods of attaching covers to heels.

In covering wood heels it is customary to apply a suitable adhesive such, for example, as rubber latex, to both the heels and the covers and, after the adhesive coatings have become sufliciently tacky, to pull the covers over the heels. In practice the' adhesive is applied to a substantial number of heels and covers at one time, the heels being dipped in a tank of latex and the covers being coated by means of a brush. The coated heels and covers are laid on separate screens or trays and the trays are laid on tables or racks where they are allowed to remain until the adhesive has attained the desired condition of tackiness and the operatives are ready to apply the covers to the heels. This process requires the use of large numbers of heel trays and cover trays and both the heels, which are of various sizes, and the covers, which are cut to correspond with the sizes of the heels, must be carefully arranged according to size on the trays in such relation as to facilitate the assembling of heels and covers of corresponding sizes. This mode of operation, as ordinarily practiced, is wasteful of factory space and wasteful of the operatives time and energy and often causes disorder and confusion resulting in undue delays in production. Moreover, the covers are liable to become soiled as a result of lack of care and cleanliness in the handling of the covers and the liquid adhesive.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of covering heels the practice of which will avoid the above-mentioned difficulties.

With the above object in view, the present invention, in one aspect, provides an improved method of covering heels which consists in disposing between a heel and a heel cover fibrous cellulose derivative treated with a solvent therefor, and laying the cover against the heel thereby causing cement formed by the action of the solvent on the cellulose derivative to stick the cover directly to the heel, The cellulose derivative herein disclosed is in the form of fabric loosely woven from thread or yarn composed of a suitable cellulose ester or cellulose ether, the fabric being cut into small pieces corresponding in size and shape with the size and shape of the covers with which the pieces are to be used. In using such pieces of fabric in attaching heel covers, the attaching piece is first treated with a solvent which, by acting on the cellulose derivative, will produce cement and the freshly-treated or softened fabric is laid uponA the inner surface of a cover. The cover is then wrapped around and pressed upon a heel to cause the cement to stick the cover directly to the heel, the pressure being preferably sustained until the cement has become substantially dry to insure security of at- 5 tachment of the cover.

The foregoing and other aspects of the present invention will be Set forth in the following description and pointed out in the appended claims.

The invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. l is a plan view of a piece of a woven cellulose ester fabric cut to the size and shape of a heel cover for use in attaching the cover to a heel;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing a heel, a cover having an attaching piece of cellulose ester fabric applied thereto, the fabric having been softened by means of a suitable solvent, and an elastic pad for use in applying the cover to thel heel;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the pad shown in Fig. 2 showing how the cover is applied to the heel by the action of the pad; and 25 Figs. 4 and 5 are sectional views taken substantially along the lines IV-IV and V-V, respectively, of Fig. 3.

As exemplified in the drawing, the fabric employed for securing the covers to the heels is loosely woven from a suitable cellulose derivative, easily soluble in a readily available organic solvent to form cement. While cellulose esters and ethers, such as cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, ethyl cellulose and benzyl cellulose, may be used for this purpose, I have found the cellulose acetate fabric which is commercially available under the trade name Celanese particularly satisfactory. This fabric is cut into small pieces for use in attaching individual heel covers, the attaching pieces, one of which is shown at I0, corresponding in size and shape with the size and shape of the heel covers. Advantageously, the fabric attaching pieces may be cut by the same dies employed in the cutting of the covers. The illustrated attaching piece Ill has been cut to the proper size and shape to adapt it for use in attaching a cover I2 to a heel I4. As shown, the cover I2 is adapted to cover the rear and side surfaces of the heel I4 and to overlie the adja- 50 cent margins of the attaching face I6, the toplift-receiving face I8 and the breast face 20 of the heel.

In using the attaching piece I0 for securing a cover to a heel, the piece is softened, for example 455 by immersing it in acetone or other suitablev solvent, and the softened piece is then laid upon the side of the cover which is to be next to the heel, care being taken to see that the edges of the attaching piece-are substantially alined with the edges of the cover. A pad 22 composed of elastic material, such as sponge rubber, may be advantageously employed for applying the cover 'l2 to the heel and conveniently the cover may be laid, face down, on the pad while the pad is in a iiat condition, as shown in Fig. 2, and thereafter the softened attaching piece I 0 is laid upon the cover. Finally, the heel I6 is placed upon the attaching piece IQ in the position shown in Fig. '2, the heel being preferably held stationary by suitable clamping means (not shown). The pad 22 is then wrapped around the heel, the pad being compressed sufficiently to press the cover smoothly against the rear and side surfaces of the heel, and to cause the Ymarginal portions of the pad to overlap the attaching, top-lift-receiving and breast'faces of the heel substantially as illustrated in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, in order to press the marginal portions of the cover upon those surfaces of the heel. Advantageously, the pad 22 may be operated to apply the cover to the heel as above described by means o-f a machine such, for example, as that disclosed in Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,000,128, granted May 7, 1935, upon an application of W. P. Devine. 'I'he pressure exerted upon the pad 22 is preferably maintained for a sufficient length of time to insure drying of the cement produced by the action of the solvent. Upon release of the pressurerapplied to the pad the cover will have been smoothly and firmly secured to the heel.

Instead of using a pad, such as the pad 22, for applying covers to heels, a cover with a piece of attaching fabric applied to its inner side may be Wrapped around or pulled over a heel by the hands of a covering operative in the manner customarily practiced in the covering of wood heels, the cover being thus pulled into engagement with the side and rear surfaces of the heel and the marginal portions of the cover being laid or pressed down by the operativers fingers upon the attaching, the top-lift-receiving and. the breast faces of the heel. For the purpose of holding the cover under pressure during the drying of the cement produced by the softening of the cellulose derivative fabric, in cases where the cover is applied manually around the heel, the heel with its newly-applied cover may be insert=l ed in a yielding holder or clamp made of soft rubber or similar elastic material and of such a shape as readily to envelop and conform to the contour of the rear and sides of the heel and preferably also to overlap the other faces of the heel in a manner similar to that in which the pad 22 overlaps portions of the heel surface, as shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5.

In practicing my improved method of covering heels there is no handling of cements in liquid form, no separate application of cement to heels and covers, and no necessity for using trays and 'racks for storing cemented heels and cemented covers prior to the application of the covers to the heels. By eliminating the necessity of using liquid cement there is little if any danger of soiling or discoloring the heel covers. The cellulose derivative attaching pieces may be softened and used for the purpose of securing the covers to the heels in less time than was required heretofore to coat both the heels and the covers with covers and the heels resulting from the use of4 cellulose derivative as the bonding agent is exceptionally strong, so strong, in fact, that the margins of the covers, even if trimmed flush with Y the adjacent edges of the heels, will have no tendency to peel away from the heels.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. That improvement in methods of covering heels which comprises disposing between a heell and a heel cover fibrous cellulose `derivative treated with a solvent therefor, and laying the cover against the heel thereby causing cement formed by the action of the solvent on the cellulose derivative to stick the cover directly to the heel.

2. That improvement in methods of covering heels which consists in disposing between a heel and a heel cover a piece of cellulose ester fabric treated with a solvent therefor, and applying sustained pressure to the cover thereby causing cement formed by the action of the solvent on the cellulose ester to secure the cover directly to the heel.

3. That improvement in methods o'f covering heels which consists in softening ,a piece of cellulose ester fabric cut substantially to the size and shape of a heel cover, disposing the softened Vpiece of fabric between a heel and a cover for the heel, and applying pressure to the cover thereby causing cement formed by the softening' of the cellulose ester to stick the cover directly to the heel.

4. That improvement in methods of covering heels which consists in treating fibrous cellulose derivative with a solvent therefor which by acting thereon will produce cement, applying the freshly-treated cellulose derivative to a heel cover, applying the coverto the heel with the freshly-treated cellulose derivative between the cover and the heel, and applying pressureY to the cover thereby causing the cement produced by the action of the solvent to stick the cover directly to the heel.

5. That improvement in methods of covering heels which consists in cutting a piece of loosely woven cellulose ester fabric to substantially the size and shape of a heel cover, softening Said piece of fabric with a solvent for said cellulose ester, superposing the softened fabric upon the inner side of a heel cover, wrapping the heel cover around a heel, and applying pressure to the cover thereby conforming it to the heel and causing cement formed by the action of the solvent upon the cellulose ester to stick the cover directly to the heel.

6. That improvement in methods of cementattaching heel covers to heels which comprises enveloping the rear and side faces of a heel with .a cover having applied to its inner surface a piece of cellulose derivative fabric treated with a solvent therefor which by acting thereon will produce cement, applying pressure to the cover to conform it to the heel, and maintaining said pressure until said cement has dried sufficiently to secure the cover directly vto the heel.

'7. That improvement in methods of covering heels which consists in laying a cover, outer side down, upon an elastic pad, treating fibrous cellulose derivative with a solvent and within a short time thereafter laying it upon the inner side of the cover on the pad, and wrapping the pad, With the cover and the freshly-treated cellulose derivative thereon, about a heel thereby conforming the cover to the heel and causing cement formed by the action of the solvent on the cellulose derivative to stick the cover directly to the heel.

8. That improvement in methods of covering heels which consists in laying a heel cover, outer side down, upon an elastic pad, treating fibrous cellulose derivative with a solvent therefor which by acting thereon will produce cement, laying the treated cellulose derivative upon the exposed side of the cover on the pad, wrapping the pad, with the cover and the cellulose derivative thereon. about a heel thereby conforming the cover to the heel, and holding the pad under pressure during the drying of the cement formed by the action of the solvent upon the cellulose derivative thereby causing the cover to become directly and securely attached to the heel.

MAX W. '.IETLOW. 

